New York Jets Offseason Concern Must Be Addressed Before Trade Deadline

The New York Jets didn't do much to improve a key weakness in the offseason and now it is coming back to haunt them.

Oct 6, 2024; London, United Kingdom; New York Jets safety Tony Adams (22), cornerback Isaiah Oliver (23) and safety Chuck Clark (36) celebrate against the Minnesota Vikings in the second half at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. / Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

The New York Jets retooled most of their roster this offseason to adjust for last year's shortcomings, but one group remained a question mark heading into the campaign. A few weeks into the year, it looks like the questions were warranted.

As Josh Edwards of CBS Sports examined the state of each NFL team heading into the deadline, he found that the Jets still have a clear hole that needs to be filled. That would be the underperforming and oft-injured group over at safety.

"Safety Chuck Clark was added to injured reserve and Tony Adams and Ashtyn Davis missed Thursday night's game," said Edwards. "The bright side is that the cornerback room is finally starting to get healthy and edge rusher Haason Reddick finally elected to be a part of the team. 

The injuries to the safety room forced New York to start Jalen Mills and Isaiah Oliver and had them each play at least 70 snaps. While they actually plated fine in this game, that won't be a recipe for success on a weekly basis.

Mills did not allow a single catch in four targets, per Pro Football Focus. He only missed one tackle, which is a massive improvement.

The veteran has actually been fine in coverage over the last three starts, but has done an overall poor job of tackling and against the run overall.

Oliver is a cornerback that has played a bit of safety before, but is playing more in the box than ever. The transition has been ok, but again leaves a lot to be desired against the run.

He also is a bit more prone to giving up big plays in coverage than Mills.

When the room was healthy, they still weren't playing at a suitable level.

Adams gets a pass as he's actually played fine this season. He looks pretty much like he did last year, so he's at least playable.

Clark missed a year of football due to injury and has not been quick to pick it back up. He's a liability in coverage and hasn't made a desired impact against the run.

Davis started the year out third on the depth chart but who knows if he'd even be playing right now if he was healthy given his struggles earlier in the year.

Luckily for the Jets there is still some time before the trade deadline, allowing them to add to the group and adjust for the mistake of ignoring it in the offseason.